" Connecticut in the American Civil War: Slavery, Sacrifice, and Survival serves as a model of what a state-level survey of the Civil War can achieve. More than a synthesis, his book attains a potent combination of description and analysis."—Peter C. Luebke, The Civil War Monitor

A riveting account of Connecticuts involvement in the Civil War

Connecticut in the American Civil War offers readers a remarkable window into the state’s involvement in a conflict that challenged and defined the unity of a nation. The arc of the war is traced through the many facets and stories of battlefield, home front, and factory. Matthew Warshauer masterfully reveals the varied attitudes toward slavery and race before, during, and after the war; Connecticut’s reaction to the firing on Fort Sumter; the dissent in the state over whether or not the sword and musket should be raised against the South; the raising of troops; the sacrifice of those who served on the front and at home; and the need for closure after the war. This book is a concise, amazing account of a complex and troubling war. No one interested in this period of American history can afford to miss reading this important contribution to our national and local stories.

The paperback edition includes a reading guide, which is also available at http://www.wesleyan.edu/wespress/e-books/materials/warshauer_reading_guide.pdf

“A concise, well written overview of the major battles fought both on the ground and in the political arena during the Civil war. …(O)ffers fresh insight in the political motivations for both Connecticut lawmakers and nationally elected officials regarding slavery, emancipation—Christina Beaird, AASL/PLR “Outstanding” University Press Books

“Warshauer’s account puts political parties and questions about racial policy at the heart of Connecticut’s wartime history. I hope that every state’s commemoration of the sesquicentennial of the Civil War produces a study as good as this one.”—Mark E. Neely, Jr., author of the Pulitzer Prize–winning book, The Fate of Liberty: Abraham Lincoln and Civil Liberties

“With Connecticut in the American Civil War, Matthew Warshauer links local and personal stories to a well known national story, providing readers with provocation and useful ways to think about Connecticut’s past, the Civil War, and their effects on contemporary issues.”—Sally Whipple, former president, Connecticut League of Historical Organizations

MATTHEW WARSHAUER is a professor of history at Central Connecticut State University. He is the editor of the scholarly journal Connecticut History and the author of Andrew Jackson and the Politics of Martial Law: Nationalism, Civil Liberties, and Partisanship and Andrew Jackson in Context.

A Driftless Connecticut Series Book

This book is a 2011 selection in The Driftless Connecticut Series,
for an outstanding book in any field on a Connecticut topic
or written by a Connecticut author.
The Driftless Connecticut Series is funded by the
Beatrice Fox Auerbach Foundation Fund
at the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving.